Those with addiction need support, not shame

Wisconsin Sharing Without Shame quilts are made up of red squares signifying those who are actively in their addiction, gray squares signifying those who are incarcerated, white squares signifying those who are in recovery and black squares signifying people who tragically lost their lives to addiction.(Photo: Photo courtesy of Bev Kelley-Miller)

September is National Recovery Month. People in recovery need to know they are supported. There is hope and success into recovery. The families who have lost their family members need to know they are not alone in their journey.

Stigmas of addiction keep people from openly sharing what is really happening. Addiction affects one in every three families. Addiction can happen to anyone. The very first time someone uses drugs or alcohol, they can begin to turn on addiction-related genes. Young people try substances out of curiosity, to fit in, to have fun, to feel normal. They truly don’t understand the ramifications of the lifelong struggle with addiction.

Once addicted, they are shamed and blamed for their own brain disease.

When my daughter, Megan Kelley, forever 22, died from a heroin overdose on April 14, 2015, I had a choice to hide the fact or to share Megan’s story of family addiction. Megan’s story appeared in The Post-Crescent a month after she died and again this year when we held a balloon release on her angelversary. One month and a day after Megan’s death, I was at Appleton East High School sharing Megan’s story with seniors trying to prevent other families from going through a similar journey.

Since then, I have presented Megan’s story to countless classes in the Fox Cities. I bring Megan’s urn and her death certificate so that students and parents can see the stark reality of what can happen. Rarely does addiction start with heroin. It often starts with legally prescribed medication given out freely at a doctor’s office.

On Sept. 11, we held the Fox Cities Lights of Hope and displayed two Wisconsin Sharing Without Shame quilts. One hundred people came to listen to speakers who have been affected by addiction. Anthony Alverado of Rise Together inspired people to be agents of change in a social movement to destigmatize addiction. Many people in the crowd shared their stories.

Those who are addicted are not bad people. Losing hundreds a day to addiction across the U.S. is unacceptable. Addiction costs our society over $400 billion dollars every year. Treatment is a better alternative for taxpayers and all humanity. This national epidemic needs to stop now.